RIB-DEMPTION!!!!!

Now we all know that I love to bake, like for real! I like to cook too. OK I love to cook, but I just don't talk about it as much. AND I ain't cooking for anybody (my kids do have the best food at their house parties!)

I have been wanting some BBQ ribs for a few days but when I FINALLY decided to go to Sacramento to my aunt's shop House Of Chicken & Ribs in Antelope I would have gotten there 10 minutes before closing. Now, Aunty Kim would have had my food hooked up and ready to go, but I wanted to sit down with my sweet tea and lemonade and ENJOY!

So I got my self together Sunday, bought a grill, put it together (I let Nate tighten the screws).. My mom is McGuyver Sr. I'm Jr., but that's another story. I soaked my chips, lit my coals, waited on them to ash over, spread them out, put my ribs on. and told Nate to put them close to the fire for about 15-20 minutes. when he goes to check them , he calls me all panicked and stuff "MELE, COME LOOK!!!!" My danggone ribs was on FIYAH!!! why do I need to check them? move them! I mean OMG! WTH! and all that was going through my head..

So I cooked the ribs (did I say two slabs) and 1 slab was beyond repair.. Too bad Keiko is gone, she would have had a field day! (RIP KEIKO) so I threw some links and a few breasts on the grill, so we wouldn't have the vegetarian meal.

Later on, I got some tips from a griller that I know (Thanks Kev!) and decided that I was gonna do it again today! So I had Kennedy season a slab and when I got home from school I lit my fire, ashed over, placed my chips, and started cooking my meat...and I watched them and I turned them,etc.. Ya'll know how it goes..

I put some of my sauce (I like Sweet Baby Ray's sauce but Sunday I made some with my new cookbook from the Neely's-I have a cookbook problem too!) ummmm ummmm good.

One day, I will work on my food photography, but today I just got a pic of RIB-DEMPTION!!!

Daring Cooks-East Meets West!!-Dumplings-Long

My first Daring cooks challenge was part of my favorite Cuisine. CHINESE!!! YEA!.. I was way excited when I found out what the challenge was. So excited in fact, that I talked about it for a month.. THEN I ended up posting a day late! WHY, you ask? BECAUSE I FELL ASLEEP! I had a long day. LOL anywhoo back to the dumplings. I can't find my camera charger so I had to take pics with my cell phone. Luckily I have the option to change photo sizes so hopefully they turned out alright!

The daring cooks challenge was hosted by Jen of use real butter. As I was reading her blog earlier, I thought it funny that she said she taught some white people how to make dumplings. WELL NOW, she can add a sistah to the list, because although I tried to grill yesterday also,my husband made the comment that I make Chinese food better than I can grill. My honorary Chinese Name is Ming Lee, let him tell it!

OK, back to the pot stickers.

I chose to make the shrimp and pork dumplings, because if shrimp is an option I am taking it! here is a pic of all my ingredients in a measuring cup (I decided to use my phone AFTER I measured everything!



OK, my kids kept saying MOM when ARE you making them? they smell so good???!!! I had the mixture sitting on the counter while I rested (I was tired, shoot!)Can you tell, my kiddos love Chinese food too!

OK OK I plugged along, and I made my dough in a processor.. Jen's mama makes it by hand, but I'm sure the pic of ME making pot stickers ain't the most authentic thing, so I used the processor like Jen does! Look at my processor! It's an old skool Cuisinart that I got on freecycle.. If you don't know what that it, google it.. it's the coolest! Then you have to give the dough a rest.. COOL, another rest for me!!



After the rest, you cut the dough into these lil balls and then you flatten them out (Jen has a WAY detailed post about it with pics and everything, so I'll spare you. Just clicky to her blog and see for yourself! use real butter-dumplings

my first rolling experience was the bomb! I mean, I AM studying to be a pastry chef.. I can roll a circle.. just don't ask to look at the subsequent rolling photos!



now, as I was was filling and pleating I read the instructions like 10 times.. "Kennedy (my daughter) she said WHAT? OMG I need a video, somebody should put up a video!" (I should have read the entire thread because this morning I found a video on how to fill and pleat!

so Kennedy bravely snaps a pic of me pleating...


by this point, I was SOOOO tired I was counting like "OK it's 5 of us in the house, so if I make 15, we all can taste 3 which is more than what you get at the restaurant! (it wasn't the pot stickers that made me tired, just everything from the day..AND it was only like 7 o'clock, it wasn't even late)

so I plugged along and rolled all the dough I made.. they are kinda ugly, but they are the prettiest dumplings I have ever seen. Kinda like how a parent feels about their children!



I pan fried mine...



I also deep friend some (I love gyoza) but the pan frieds won out.. I couldn't take a pic of me eating because I was eating too fast! I think I ate about 7.. (EJ didn't want any, so I didn't want his to feel left out!

SHEEEEEE'S BACKKKKKKK

As much time as I spend on this here computer and in that there kitchen, seems to be for everyone else, BUT me.. I bake for others, I compute for others!! sheesh! so I started a new blog, took some things back. BUT I imported my old blog because I felt like I was giving up a kid LOL. I just looked back at my last post... SEPTEMBER??!! YIKES!!! ok ok, I won't try to catch up on the past months, I'll just go from here. my random (and not so random) rants and ravings. I rejoined the daring group.. I love to cook.. what can I say?? I didn't rejoin TWD.. I think weekly fun, just may be too much for me!

soo, between blogging and facebook. Oh wait did I say facebook? I will NEVA get off the computer hahahahahahah (in my best villainous laugh)